I haven’t stitched as much as I’d like to so far this year, but it’s because I’m finally painting my sewing room! Almost everything has been packed up, moved, and unpacked as we finish an area. We’re doing it in bits so I don’t become overwhelmed by the messiness of it.

I started with this

I switched the glass doors on the right to my fabric cabinet on the left and moved the solid doors to cover my cross-stitch fabric. The quilt fabric was too long and I’ve spent the past couple of days refolding all of this to get back in my cabinets.

Here’s where I was when I went to bed last night:

My goal for the year is to sew during the day, and stitch during the late afternoon/evening, with reading thrown in every now and then. I usually read during a lunch break and if I’m by myself while I’m eating breakfast. If I go by how things went the latter part of last year, I know there will be some days that I need a break from sewing and I’ll just sit and stitch all day, or I’ll need a break from both and sit and read all day

I’m beginning with 5 stitching and 5 quilting goals to start out my WIPocalypse. I have a page here.

As to stitching, the plan is to work exclusively on Lizzie*Kate’s Unseen Things mystery until completed, then start working on And They Sinned. My sewing will also include finishing out the two Sam Sarah items from last year into bell pulls. I’m sure some time during this year I’ll be adding things to my WIPocalypse stitching list.

Here’s the last photo I took of Unseen Things.

This was taken December 29, 2014, and is the first part, minus the small bees on the right. I have since moved on to part two and will make sure I have an updated photo on the next check-in.

My first quilting project is to finish my Phoebe’s Flower Box quilt. It needs borders, to be quilted, and then the binding.

As with my stitching, I know I’ll be working on other things in addition to those on my list and will be adding them as necessary.

Like this:

Like so many other people around the world I hope this new year brings joy and excitement and good surprises. I want to learn something new, forget something old, and make a new friend. I want travel, and laughter, and riches beyond compare, but not the financial kind.

This year’s mantra is “Stop Saying, Start Doing.”

I’ve already posted about my 101 things, and mentioned that I’m going back to participating in WIPocalypse. My page for that is set up. I’ve tried to limit it to 5 stitching things and 5 quilting things. That’s not to mean there won’t be more done in those areas, just those 10 things I’d like to finish in 2015.

There are several authors I have on my wish list that I’ve never read and I’d like to read at least one of them. I also starting reading the Bible through today. I’m using The One Year Bible for Women by Tyndale House Publishers. I’ve asked Melissa to use her excellent card making skills and make me a bookmark.

I want to keep expanding my cooking skills and try several new recipes. I have a couple of cookbooks I haven’t cooked from yet and am anxious to try them out.

I’m recreating my household journal this year since I want to be better at managing my time. I don’t want the internet to suck my valuable time away, especially with the things I need to do for COMICON and my new Arizona Quilters Guild position, so I plan to continue to use my timer when I’m at the computer. Less internet suckage equals more reading, quilting and stitching, too!

I want to go back to that mountain and try another, and another, and another. I bought some new, warmer, workout clothes a couple of days ago and got rid of the “nothing to wear” excuse I’ve been using since the weather got cold to us, so I’m headed back out to my daily walks. I also want to get back to my Zumba classes so studio shoes are on my shopping list, too.

While there are many, many more things I’d like to do in 2015, they’re just brewing in the back of my mind and if they happen, I’ll share.

Like this:

I sometimes wonder if our calendar was created so the happy part of the year is at the end so we forget so much of the bad things that happened early on. I know I could read back thru my blog and find some truly forgettable things, but if I can’t remember them right now, why bother? They happened, they’re over, and if they were that life altering, wouldn’t I remember them now?

I had to quit my job at the quilt store, but I learned so much while working there, and I have had so much more time to devote to the things and people I love. I had to have dental surgery, but as painful as it was, it made things better, and I’m going to have less in 2015. I fell down that mountain, and probably broke my arm, but at least it was from the top, where I had never made it before. None of my family or close friends died this year, which is the best blessing of all. I try to grow from the bad things as well as the good things. Will something happen in 2015 that makes me think “oh, NOW I remember what happened last year.” Probably. But for now I’m happy in my not remembering.

Some good things happened this year too, that I know I’m not currently remembering, but my heart is still so full from our wonderful Christmas and the time I got to spend with Son and FDIL. It’s so hard for me to believe they’ve been together for 9 years. I saw some moments that made me rethink my thoughts that I wasn’t a very good mother. He’s such a loving person and not afraid to show it and that is indeed a great accomplishment.

I got to travel in 2014. I had my annual girlfriend fest in Vegas. I had my first quilt retreat experience. I also had my 2nd quilt retreat experience with a completely different group of women, a couple of whom have become really good friends.

I joined a quilt guild and have had so much fun getting to know the women there. I joined a local-to-me sewing group. I finished my first bed sized quilt and almost finished a 2nd one. I lost and found my stitching mojo and I went back to my Thursday night stitching group.

I changed my eating habits in July and learned some new cooking methods and tried some really great recipes, and had a couple of flops that made me thankful for scrambled eggs for dinner I climbed a mountain. I stepped on the scale this morning, and am down 21.8 pounds for the year. I logged my best day ever since 2012 on FitBit with 24,993 steps.

I reread some favorite books and discovered an author had written a couple more in the series. We went to the movies, although not nearly often enough. I had dinner out with our friends almost every month.

But most important for the year, I let it go and finally found myself, which made my 2014 journey worth it.

Like this:

I feel the need to be domestic, and yet there’s barely anything for me to do! I cleaned the house really well before we left for CA since I knew we’d be tired when we got home. There were no decorations so that didn’t need to be dealt with. All that has left me to do is laundry and the daily clean-up in the kitchen.

All that spare time means I’ve been catching up on my blog reading and that might have gotten me into some trouble

It’s been fun seeing what everyone is planning for 2015. I mentioned to Mister this morning that I can’t believe it’s already been 15 years since the world was freaking out about Y2K.

My own plans to date have included my going back to 101 things in 1001 days and I’ve set up my page. I don’t know what version I finally published because I caught myself waking up at night thinking “oh wait! I want to do this too!”. But it is what it is and I’ve left myself some breathing room as far as my quilting and stitching goes. It’s probably cheating but I can’t imagine trying to create needle and thread goals for 2 3/4 years.

Speaking of those goals, I’m going back to participating in WIPocalypse. I wish I still had my old lists so I can laugh at myself. My lists were so long that I scared myself from getting much done. I wasn’t quilting at the time either. Since the guidelines have changed and quilting is included, I’ve decided to try it again, but this time around I’m starting small and building. It contains 5 stitching things and 5 quilting things. I’ll be posting the list next week.

For now I’ll leave you with the list of movies I watched all day while stitching and doing laundry: A Christmas Carol, Meet me in St. Louis, Elf, A Lion in Winter, and Trading Places. Quite an eclectic Christmas season selection

Like this:

But it couldn’t have happened without the greatest babysitter in the world! This is the first vacation we’ve taken together in 5 years. My BFF’s daughter K house/puppy sat for us and it was so great to not once worry about anything while we were gone.

This poor fella was wearing himself out welcoming everyone as they checked in to the hotel.

I fell in love with the headboards. You can’t see it very well in this photo but there are tiny little nail pricks that created firework bursts in the sky.

We walked around Downtown Disney after we got settled. I found this shirt, that is SO me, but decided against getting it.

I also spotted this one and snapped a photo since I’m hoping I can get Mister to paint it for me.What looks like white, is really silver and I think this would be great painted in pixels like he did the storm trooper for his art class.

We had a nice dinner and a couple of drinks, then headed back to our room to sleep until the kids arrived. Future DIL decided to take the train down to Oceanside and ride back up to Anaheim with Son after he got off work at 9:30. We were expecting them about 11 p.m. but there was a construction site that took more than an hour for them to get through and by the time they arrived it was 1:30 a.m. They wanted to do gifts as soon as they got there. They even got me “Disney” gifts in addition to 2 GC to Ulta. The fragrance is from FDIL’s mother.

I have no idea what time it really was by the time we got back to sleep. Mister got up at 6 to go buy our tickets so we could get in the park an hour earlier than the general public. Good thing we did too, since we were on our 3rd ride by the time the park opened. We kept waiting for the huge crowds to show up and slow line times down, but we never had a long wait, or at least longer than 30 minutes. We took full advantage of the Fast Passes and leapfrogged our way through the park. The ONLY ride we didn’t ride, that I wanted to ride, was the run away mine train.

At some time during the afternoon the kids headed back to the room for a nap and Mister and I went to some areas and shops to pass the time. We had Fast Passes for the evening light show and met back right about 8 p.m. After the fireworks show we started working our way back to the hotel and the best ride of the day….our beds.

The next morning I met a friend in Downtown Disney for breakfast while Mister and the kids started packing up the room and loading cars. We made some changes to our plans so the kids were headed to FDIL’s parents to spend Christmas Day and we were going back to the park. It was so much fun accepting and wishing Merry Christmas to everyone we walked by. Our hotel had a beautiful photo spot and we took advantage of it. People just lined up and whomever was in line next took the person in front’s photos for them.

It wouldn’t be a trip to Anaheim/Disneyland for me if I didn’t end my trip with a visit to the Jazz Kitchen Express for breakfast. Since I had already eaten, I headed to Starbucks for coffee while Mister and the kids had breakfast. They did save me a beignet.

After the kids left we headed to the monorail for a ride into the back of the park. We were planning on riding this again but when we got off the train we walked into this!

It was about 11 a.m. and the Fast Passes told us to come back at 8 p.m. No. Way. LOL We ended up doing a whole lot of walking and did get to ride the runaway mine train.

We headed back to the Jazz Kitchen for lunch (shrimp po boys and ya-ya gumbo!). Santa did his shopping on the way out of the park Christmas day. I ended up with 2 scarves (look close for the Disney references), brush cleaner and Urban Decay Naked 2 eye pallette, a Castle charm for my bracelet (not pictured), and a Dooney & Burke Disney Shopper.

Every year when we’d go to Disneyland on Thanksgiving, I’d add a Jim Shore Disney Christmas piece to my collection. I did buy a Mickey this trip, but we also purchased a new piece. Mister fell in love with the bright colors of the Britto collection so we will be building that as well. He decided on this piece since it made him think of the dogs.

We drove down and spent the night in Oceanside. We got settled in our room about 7 p.m. and sent straight to bed. Talk about feeling old and worn out!

Son drove down from FDIL’s house early that morning and we had breakfast before saying goodbye. On our way out of town we headed to Buccaneer Beach to watch the sun rise over the ocean and surfers and see if Mister’s surfing buddies were hanging out. We actually passed one of them driving off and he turned around and told us that the other one had left earlier so we were able to call him and he turned around as well. I was glad he got to meet up with them for a nice long talk.

While I love living here in Arizona, and I think the desert is such a beautiful place, I miss the Pacific ocean so much that I cry every time I see it again. There’s just something about the sound of the waves that calms my heart and I especially love walking on the beach when stormy weather is approaching. It’s so wild and wonderful. I did live on the Atlantic ocean for almost 2 years and it wasn’t the same.

I was so happy to get home and see the puppies.

The postman left some wonderful packages for me. I took advantage of some great sales before we left.

The Downton fabrics are all low volume, and the Shop Local has stitching related prints inside. These will be used in some scrappy quilts, especially in Wild & Goosey.

Threads of Time will go into my Farmer’s Wife scrap bins. I couldn’t resist the Petite Prints and all that red. They’ll be used in my upcoming Bonnie Hunter Happy Scrappy Houses class in a couple of weeks.

This layer cake and charm pack will also be used in Happy Scrappy Houses.

And these are the FQs from my December color of the month club I joined in place of one of my finished BOMs. I’m thinking of using the 2nd from the right as the chimney’s in my Happy Scrappy Houses.

So today I’m being as lazy as I can and still get in a trip to the grocery store and do some laundry. College football and cross stitch sound mighty fine.

This past weekend was the Phoenix COMICON Fan Fest. It has been touted as a success and that makes me happy. Two and a half weeks from now I have my first meeting for COMICON 2015, so I’m trying to not even think about anything related to it until then, but it’s a near impossible task I’ve set myself.

Next week we’ll be in California with Son and Girlfriend. I am really excited about that. Since we moved here we have flown Son and Girlfriend in to spend Christmas with us. That, and a pair of tickets to Disneyland, has been their Christmas gift from us. Last year we asked them if they would mind if we came to California and all 4 of us went to Disneyland on Christmas. You would have thought they were both 10 with their reaction We’ll be crossing an item from my bucket list by staying at the Disneyland Hotel while we’re there. We’ve decided to go to Disneyland on Christmas Eve and California Adventure on Christmas Day, since we’ll have to leave Anaheim late Christmas Day to drive to Oceanside. We haven’t completely decided when we’ll return to Arizona, but no later than Sunday.

I am working on a Christmas item right now. I gave up on getting my room painted until after Christmas. Between Mister’s studying for finals, my COMICON obligations, and some sewing I needed to get done, I quit stressing about it, cleared a spot and set my machine back up. Here’s where I shoved everything that was stacked on my table, so I could sew. That white “wall” is my design wall and behind that’s my shelved in closet.

And here’s what the guest bed looks like (there are 2 tall piles on the floor I didn’t bother taking photos of). Most of that will go on the shelves behind the design wall in the photo above.

Here’s what I finished by yesterday.

Hoping to finish the piecing today and the quilting and binding tomorrow.

Very little stitching on my Lizzie*Kate mystery and no updated photo of it.

That second question up there? I have been planning out my 2015. I try to adopt a positive thought for myself every year. Last year it was “happy thoughts” and no matter what was going on I tried to always remind myself to think happy thoughts. I had a really good year with that.

This year I tried to continue that and added on to be less judgmental by reminding myself that I may find myself in that person’s situation one day, or that I didn’t know the story behind what was making someone behave the way they were, either toward me or toward others.

This coming year my plans are to “quit saying, start doing.” I’ve been listing my WIPs and projects I want to start and trying to formulate a plan that will get me doing more. I love my calendar on my phone for reminding me of appointments and not letting me double book something, but I’m going back to using a paper organizer for my projects. More about that in a second. I’m also going to use Wunderlist. I have it downloaded on my computer, phone, and tablet. It’s the first thing that pops up on my computer when I start it up and it shows me what I have to work on, as a reminder to not get sidetracked. I’m tracking my WIPs and projects I want to do on it since I can add things from the different electronics and it’ll sync between the 3.

After following a discussion Melissa was having on Facebook, and others sharing what I’ve been thinking and the types of planners they use, I’ve decided on a Planner Pad. I love that it has the possibility to be used as something other than an appointment book (which my phone covers). Also, I will be using my timer more to keep from letting the computer suck me in. I have found myself spending less time on it the last few months anyway and it has made a difference in what I’ve accomplished.

I have 4 trips planned for 2015. Vegas (Jan), Prescott (Apr), Tennessee (Jun), Prescott (Oct). I am stepping up my volunteer activities as well. In addition to continuing my sewing for AZ Blankets 4 Kids, I’ve taken a larger responsibility with COMICON, and I am the new Membership Director for the Arizona Quilters Guild. I am looking forward to having a very heart-fulfilling year.

So my goals for 2015 aren’t to get this done, or that finished, etc., but to just be more organized which should lead to productivity. I guess I’m sort of going to run my retired life like I ran my working life

Like this:

I swear, for someone who’s “retired” my calendar sure is full these days. I’m not complaining, but feeling very lucky and in some cases very appreciated There are stitch-togethers one night a week at my LNS; twice a month sew-togethers with a local group; guild meetings twice a month; a sew-in at my LQS; manicure and pedicure appointments, dental appointment, COMICON meetings – the event is next weekend!; and Christmas and our trip to California is just around the corner. Plus there are 2 other sew-togethers each month that I haven’t been able to attend yet, because of my busy schedule. Oh, and let’s not forget the mystery quilt!

While all of this is bringing me joy (okay, except for that dental appointment – which actually contained good news on the surgery front) it is sapping my mental capacity and I’m forgetting to blog again. I haven’t felt like there has been that much to share.

So, I’m pulling out my phone to see what pictures I’ve taken this past week.

Our oranges are starting to turn. Yum! Winter harvest.

I bought a new cooking tool. I’ve wanted one for quite a while and it ended up on sale at my local grocery store, on 10% Senior Discount Day! Yay! Haven’t used it yet, but I see a pot of stew brewing in my future.

I finished another stitching project

which meant I got to start a new one

As to the mystery quilt, I managed to get 28/100 of the first part made. I’m cool with that. Last year I got behind and gave up. This year I’m following Bonnie’s instruction to stop where I am and start on the next part when it come out. After I hit “publish” I’ll be working on part 2.

Before I forget, again, I know I haven’t shown any weight stuff on here lately. With the busy-ness I have had I have been hopping on the scale Tuesday morning, writing it down, and hitting the road running, so to speak. I actually haven’t been running. Or even walking. I’m just now back to my knee not hurting after my graceful tumble down the mountain a month ago. I’ve been throwing a month-long pity party and eating sugar. I’ve paid for it the next day waking up with a headache, and my weight has bounced up and down. I’ve reminded myself that this is a lifelong way, forgiven myself, and this past week, it was back down to what it was the week I fell. I’ve got my alarm set to get out and start walking again tomorrow.

Unless I get a chance to share my Part 2 Grand Illusion progress, I probably won’t blog again until after next Sunday.

Like this:

I’ve been participating in a “photo a day” event for the past couple of months. I’ve surprised myself in that I’ve posted every single day. Next month looks hard (we’re given a word or phrase to interpret in a photo). But, the whole reason of sharing that is my subject line. That was yesterday’s subject and I immediately thought it would be a great subject for today’s blog, because this happened!

This year’s Bonnie Hunter mystery quilt clues have started and I attended a kickoff party yesterday. Many old friends were there from the guild and AZ Blankets and I made some new friends.

I feel really blessed by the amount of quilters I’ve met and the groups I’m part of.

Last year there was a much smaller group for Celtic Solstice. Here are a few of the ladies with theirs.

Mine is still at step 3

There was a whole lot of talking, cutting, pressing, sewing, and eating.

Our cake

My first block, with a label for each of us made by one of the ladies.

A block from (almost) each of us

and the 15 I managed to finish

I have all 100 each black and yellow pieces cut, and a total of 233 pairs of HSTs cut. I got many of those HSTs sewn together yesterday, as well. I have a light schedule this week and I’m hoping to get the rest done by Friday, when the next clue comes out. I still need to cut 77 pairs of HSTs.

A huge shout out and thank you to Angela of The Modern Diary for organizing us. I tease her that she may be Bonnie Hunter’s number one fan, but I’m hers. She’s so proficient!

I’m still stitching on my SamSarah Laniappe but no updated photo. The Lizzy*Kate mystery is patiently waiting and I’ve added a couple of small new items to my to-do pile.

Like this:

We will be spending the afternoon with friends this year. This is the first time I have not cooked for my family, or gone to another family member’s home for Thanksgiving. I am baking apple pie and a casserole for my contribution.

My room is still torn apart. My cutting table currently looks like this

Piled high! I’m in a bit of a panic over it since tomorrow begins Bonnie Hunter’s 2014 mystery quilt. I’m attending a sew together on Saturday but I’d like to at least cut my fabric tomorrow when the first clue comes out.

Since there has only been sewing away from home I have spent a lot of time stitching. I finished Sam Sarah’s mystery piece and have picked out the backing fabric.

There was a laniappe included with the mystery so I started it.

My design wall is sitting stagnant but I’m hoping the painting gets started this weekend so I can get back to it.

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